The
Carolina Hurricanes and the New Jersey Devils play Game 2 of their best-of-seven
Eastern Conference Semifinal series on Monday at the RBC Center (7:30
p.m., OLN, Hurricanes Radio Network). The Hurricanes advanced to the second
round by virtue of a 4-2 series win against the Montreal Canadiens in
the quarterfinal round. New Jersey defeated the New York Rangers in four
straight games to advance to the second round. Carolina scored a 6-0 win
in the series opener on Saturday.

Following
Monday’s game, the Hurricanes will remain in Raleigh and practice at the
RBC Center on Tuesday at 11 a.m. prior to departing for New Jersey.

Hurricanes
rookie netminder Cam Wardhas earned wins in each of his first
five NHL postseason starts, leading Carolina to a 4-2 series win against
Montreal and a 1-0 series lead against New Jersey. Ward has stopped 146
of 154 shots he’s faced this postseason giving him a .948 postseason save
percentage, good for second in the NHL through games of May 6. Also through
games of May 6, Ward’s 1.29 goals-against average ranked second in the
NHL. With his win in Game 1 against New Jersey, Ward became the first
rookie goaltender to win his first five NHL playoff starts since Mike
Vernon did so with Calgary in 1986. With his win in Game 3 against Montreal,
Ward became the first rookie netminder in Carolina franchise history to
win his first postseason start.

With his
win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Ward became just the
sixth rookie netminder in NHL history to win his first five NHL playoff
starts. A win in his sixth start would make Ward just the third goaltender
in NHL history to win his first six postseason starts (Tiny Thompson,
Boston, 1929-30 and J.S. Giguere, Anaheim, 2003).

The Hurricanes
and the Devils met four times during the 2005-06 regular season, with
Carolina posting a 2-1-1 record. The Hurricanes outscored New Jersey 13-9
in the four games, with Carolina’s biggest victory coming in a 6-1 game
at Continental Airlines Arena on Oct. 15. The Hurricanes posted a 4-1
win against New Jersey at the RBC Center on Dec. 17, and suffered 4-3
overtime loss on April 11 in Raleigh in the teams’ most recent meeting.
New Jersey scored its lone regulation win against Carolina on Feb. 3 when
Martin Brodeur stopped 28 shots in a 3-0 shutout win on Scott Stevens
jersey retirement night. Captain Rod Brind’Amour (3g, 1a), center
Matt Cullen (1g, 3a) and left wing Cory Stillman (0g, 4a)
led the Hurricanes in the four-game season series against New Jersey,
each posting three points. Cam Ward posted a 1-1-0 record, a 2.00
goals-against average and a .918 save percentage in two games against
the Devils while Martin Gerber posted a 1-0-1 record, a 2.51 goals-against
average and a .902 save percentage in two games. Martin Brodeur started
all four games in the series for New Jersey, posting a 2-2-0 record, a
3.27 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage. Brian Gionta led
the Devils with five points (2g, 3a).

For a detailed
breakdown of the 2005-06 series between the teams, please go to page 99
in the 2006 Carolina Hurricanes Playoff Guide. This marks the third all-time
playoff series between the Carolina franchise and New Jersey. The last
time the teams met in the postseason prior to this series was in the 2002
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, a 4-2 Hurricanes series win. The Hurricanes
franchise posts a 6-6 all-time record against the Devils in the playoffs,
including a 4-2 home record and a 2-4 record in New Jersey.